If you could fly a fighter plane in the Pacific, which one would you fly?

Opana and Surfersami

Both of you sharpen the idea and benefit of twin engine fighters over Pacific waters... reevaluating these sketchy circumstances, I must reevaluate my decision Havng selected a single engine fighter previously... I would no longer choose the p-47. Given the P-38's twin engines, long range, reconnaissance, and dive bombing capabilities, my vote is for the Der Gabelschwanz Teufel - "The forked tail devil"

Jem

 

Hey Jem, i'd have to take a P-38 as well can't stand the thought of swimming with sharks!

 

Indeed, open water freaks me out to begin with! The thought of sharks creates some unwanted anxiety... leaning towards some comfortable odds, I'm sticking with this choice Glad to see you confirm.

Jem

 

You don't fly a glider; you just hold on while it crashes!!!

 

I didn't know there were glider fighter planes...................................................................................................................

 

Japanese-Mitsubishi A6M Zero

Allied-P-51 Mustang

 

Well, you sort of fly it....

 

Ok Mr. Technical....It carries FIGHTERS!

 

I would fly the F6F Hellcat (obviously), but on the Japanese side, the Zero

 

American:Corsair

Japanese:Val Dive Bomber

 

I have a personal preference for the Corsair. It is such a beautiful and powerful looking aircraft. My next choice would be the P-51 since it was the plane that my Dad was assigned as a ground crewman when he joined the Philippine Air Force in the late 50's.

 

CORSAIR!!!!!!!

 

Gotta be the P-38. No way I would ever consider flying without a second engine... I would be too paranoid!

 

Assuming any plane ever made during the war, it's gotta be the P-51, no contest. Powerful and manuevable enough to fight with a Jap Zero, and long legs for flying over the open ocean.

I can't say any other fighter woudl be nearly as good a choice - but you flew what they gave you after all. The P-38 had terrific range and the dependability of two engines, but any Jap fighter could turn inside it so dogfighting in a P-38 was no good at all - you had to pounce on the enemy from above, unleash those 50 calibers in a quick burst, and get the Heck outa there.
the P-40 was a sturdy aircraft but had short range, poor visibility, and not very maneuvarable. The Wildcat was all the Navy had for a long time, it was a sturdy plane but no match for a zero in a dogfight so they had to develop tactics to compensate.

The best fighter pilots of WW2 avoided dogfighting whenever possible. German luftwaffe ace Erich Hartman (350 kills) preferred to strike from above and behind, out of the sun whenever possible. He would wait to shoot until he was close to his prey, the closer, the better, because you could not miss.

 

Half-pint's avatar is particularly pleasing, if a little "milky". It's a wonder, with an avatar like that, that he did not choose a P-47 Thunderbolt (or "Milk Jug")....yes I know...they weren't in the Pacific!

I don't think any fighter pilot got to 'choose' the type of aircraft he eventually flew, but the P-38 seems the weapon of 'choice'. The Pacific 'aces' (Like Richard .I "Bing" Bong and Thomas Maguire) flew P-38's....good enough for me...

I wonder if poor Richard Bong would have a different nickname in this day and age if he had his servicetime in Vietnam?

 

P-47s most certainly did fly in the PTO, what makes you think they didn't? As did P-51s in the last year in the PTO.

The P-38 was the "weapon" of choice by the USAAF fighter pilots in that theater, but they also flew P-40s, P-39s, and P-47s. Not to mention the outdated fighters they were "stuck with" at the out-break of hostilities.

But you are right in one respect (I believe) they flew what was available for flight.

 

Just hadn't seen too many examples of the Jug from the PTO....my bad!

Turns the "Milk Jug" joke around I suppose! Good show!

I had thought the greater majority of P-47s were firmly ensconed in Europe. The 8th AF got the pick of production for aircraft, with the exception of the B-29 which entered service too late to be of much use deploying to Europe. Might have been interesting to see how the B-29 handled itself against German fighter opposition, though.

And yes...I should have said "platform of choice"....my bad again.

Thought somebody might appreciate the jokes!

 

That is true that the greater majority were sent to the ETO, but here is a fine entry from the Joe Baugher site:

However, the war in the Pacific required fighter ranges even greater than did operations over Germany. In pursuit of better long-range performance, in mid-1944 the third YP-47M prototype (42-27387) was fitted with a new "wet" wing of slightly larger span and area. The aircraft was re-designated XP-47N. For the first time in the Thunderbolt series fuel was carried in the wings, a 93 US gallon tank being fitted in each wing. When maximum external tankage was carried, this brought the total fuel load of the XP-47N up to an impressive 1266 US gallons. This fuel load make it possible for a range of 2350 miles to be achieved.

The new wing also incorporated larger ailerons and squared-off wingtips. These innovations enhanced the roll-rate of the Thunderbolt and improved the maneuverability. The dorsal fin behind the bubble canopy was somewhat larger than that on the P-47D. However, the increased fuel load increased the gross weight of the aircraft. In order to cope with the increased gross weight, the undercarriage of the XP-47N had to be strengthened, which increased the weight still further. The maximum weight rose to over 20,000 pounds.

The XP-47N flew for the first time on July 22, 1944. Such was the USAAF confidence in the Thunderbolt design that they went ahead and ordered 1900 P-47Ns in June 20, 1944, even before the first XP-47N had flown.
The P-47N was destined to be the last version of the Thunderbolt to be manufactured. The first P-47N-1-RE appeared in September of 1944, and 24 were delivered by year's end. The P-47N-5-RE and subsequent batches had zero-length rocket launchers added. The R-2800-77 engine was installed in late production models such as the P-47N-25-RE.

The P-47N gave excellent service in the Pacific in the last year of the War, particularly in escorting B-29 Superfortress bombers in raids on the Japanese mainland. P-47Ns were able to escort the bombers all the way from Saipan to Japan and on many other long, overwater flights.
A total of 1667 P-47Ns was produced by the Farmingdale plant between December 1944 and December 1945, when the Thunderbolt line finally closed down. 149 more P-47Ns were built by the Evansville factory. V-J Day cancellation of 5934 Thunderbolts brought production of the type abruptly to an end.

Performance of the P-47N-5-RE included a maximum speed of 397 mph at 10,000 feet, 448 mph at at 25,000 feet, and 460 mph at 30,000 feet. Initial climb rate was 2770 feet per minute at 5000 feet and 2550 feet per minute at 20,000 feet. Range (clean) was 800 miles at 10,000 feet. Armanent included six or eight 0.50-inch machine guns with 500 rpg and two 1000-lb or three 500-lb bombs or ten 5-inch rockets. Weights were 11,000 pounds empty, 16,300 pounds normal loaded, and 20,700 pounds maximum. Dimension were wingspan 42 feet 7 inches, length 36 feet 4 inches, height 14 feet 7 inches, and wing area 322 square feet.
　
See:

Republic P-47N Thunderbolt

and:

Republic P-47N Thunderbolt

The B-29 was designed for the "long range" of the PTO, and would have been of little advantage in the ETO. That said, when the "Cold War" broke out Truman made a point of moving a number of B-29s to the British Isles and the airstrips of Egypt as a not too subtle message to Stalin that his nation's vitals were within striking distance of our bombers. We had the atomics, they didn't, and they were delivered by B-29s. What Stalin didn't know is that only the Silverplate versions could carry and drop atomics.

But then again, Truman was a poker player, not a chess player. A bluff is as good as a winning move in poker.

 

I'll just add this quickly :

P-47 Carrier take-off#

USS Manila Bay CVE-61......June 1944 there is also a Wikipedia article about it.